I visited my college best friend who is suffering from stage 4 cancer in the hospital and was a bit surprised at the changes that happened to her in almost two weeks that I haven’t seen her. I was pre-occupied with a couple of wonderful things that happened at our home front that I didn’t get a chance to drop by.

Just a couple of weeks ago, she was saying that her hair was too long and that she wanted to get a haircut ‘coz her natural curls were showing. I told her to just leave it alone and I was glad that she listened, because then she was able to enjoy her hair for a couple more weeks before they all fell out after her chemotherapy. Her cheeks were puffed from steroids. Her amputated leg rested on the bed. Her platelet count dropped to 14—way below the normal standard count of 150. I could say that she had all the reasons to complain—but she didn’t.

She welcomed me with a warm smile and I knew that if she only could, she would leap out of that bed to give me a big, tight hug. I was humbled by the sight of her. Such a strong spirit who refuses to give in to the frailties of this mortal existence.

We talked for a couple of hours to catch up on things that happened for the past couple of weeks. Her illness has not changed her outlook in life. She spoke about her husband and children with a twinkle in her eye—proud of their achievements and a deep love for them that I could sense as she described their activities. We laughed about personal jokes and discussed things that we planned to do in the coming days. She is the same person that I’ve known for more than three decades now despite her missing leg and hair. I quietly admired her strength of character and faith in God’s eternal plan.

I came to visit her that day in the hope of cheering her up, but it was me who benefitted more from that experience as I left her room and felt gratitude for all the things I have been blessed with that matter most in life—health, family and friends.

May we continue to treasure the things that matter most in life. Let’s have the faith and courage to face our challenges with a hope that these things are but for a small moment, and that our eternal rewards go beyond what our human minds can truly comprehend.

I’m one of the few people who still play Candy Crush. I know there are a lot of other interesting games out there, but this game is something that I like keeping at. There are times when I get stuck at a certain level and can’t seem to move on for several days, or weeks (I once got stuck at a level for a couple of months!), but I just kept playing it; and when I was not expecting it, I passed! All I needed was to persevere and I made it!

I think that such is life as well. Sometimes we get into a level of trial that seems to be most difficult, but we just have to keep at it, and persevere, and then when we least expect it, we get to pass it—to our surprise!

Sometimes we just need to be still and let all the chaos around us flow. And we stand our ground. And remain patient. And try to learn our lesson from the experience. Sometimes we even have to close our eyes to concentrate and not let what’s happening around us affect us. And just focus on all the positive things in life and keep going. Because just like playing a difficult level at Candy Crush, we will one day pass it (trust me!)—even if it takes many days, or many months, or even many years.

So, I said I was gonna be back, but it’s been over a year and I haven’t written anything on this blog. Yet today, I got a nudge from a dear friend encouraging me to start writing again. I told him I would make it as a goal in 2017, so here I am, trying once more to pour my thoughts out through the written language. And I hope this time, I can make it work—consistently.

Isn’t that how life really works? We set ideal goals and we imagine how things will turn out for us if only things were perfect? And then real life happens and we sometimes find ourselves lost and our ideal goals unachieved.

But I believe there is a time and a season to every purpose under the heavens, as the scriptures say. We might not achieve our ideal goals at the time that we want to attain them due to various reasons, but we shouldn’t give up. We should never give up! We should just keep trying—especially if our goals are righteous ones.

Most recently, the Miss Universe pageant was held in the Philippines and the reigning Miss Universe joined the local beauty pageant multiple times before she finally won. She persisted and didn’t give in to discouragement despite all the negative things people were saying to dampen her spirit. She just kept coming back and worked harder each time. Finally, after three tries, she achieved her goal and left everyone a lesson about perseverance that is worthy of emulation.

We can be like her. In our diverse situations in life where we sometimes feel like we failed, we can always get up and keep trying to achieve our worthy goals—again, and again, and again. Even if it takes forever.

There sometimes comes a point in our lives when we get discouraged and quit doing some of the noteworthy things we’re doing, thinking that they might just be a waste of time. And then sometimes, out of the blue, by some stroke of fate, a stranger comes up to us and encourages us to dust our shoes off, get back on our feet, and keep going.

The words of an ancient apostle ring true: “Be not weary in well doing.”

And so I will try to write again! 🙂 Wheeee!! 🙂

THANK YOU, Art, for knocking on my car window that day and encouraging me! My heart is filled with gratitude for you! 🙂

* – * – *

Life has been quite interesting for me lately. I got into a myriad of challenges that I thought were pretty intense, until I had the opportunity to sit down and listen to an old friend’s troubles and mine immediately shrunk and suddenly seemed so trivial. I guess it’s Father’s way of comforting me and making me feel more grateful for all the blessings that I have.

So, I got up and brushed it off, shrugged my shoulders and told myself to carry on. C’est la vie!! 🙂 We can choose to be happy! We can choose to appreciate the rainbow after the rain!! And to look forward to the sunrise after the dawn!!

Life is meant to be a test, yet we are designed to be happy while we are here on earth! (Yes, despite all the trials 🙂 ) Let us all strive to live up to our potential and be the best that we can be—no matter what our circumstances are.

Two days ago, I was requested to participate in a series of corporate training called the “Fearless Leadership Program.” At first I thought it was a waste of my time. I was already being pulled in many different directions and I thought that one more training—with many succeeding sessions—was too much for me to bear. I thought I had more important things to do, but I was wrong.
I didn’t know what to expect from the training. The title itself sparked my curiosity. Fearless Leadership. Will they be providing a lecture on how to become fierce in implementing mandates from executive management? Or teach us how to be tougher or more strict towards our team members? I couldn’t wait to attend and find out.
All my qualms were quenched after the first session. To my surprise, it wasn’t at all what I thought it would be. The initial session focused on understanding our entire lives—from childhood to present—and analyzing situations that happened in the past that influence the kind of persons we are today. I was very uncomfortable at first. I didn’t want to reveal some things about the past—my childhood, my family, my experiences—that I’ve always kept hidden, even from myself. But as I saw how the other participants opened themselves up and shared their experiences freely, I allowed myself to open up and share my experiences as well. By doing so, I was able to understand myself a little bit more—why my priorities are such; what motivates me; why I react to certain situations the way I do. It was, I should say, a liberating experience.
As I listened to the stories that were shared that afternoon, I learned that people have common experiences—albeit different scenarios—that either make them or break them. In most instances, seemingly negative experiences that each participant overcame brought about success beyond what they expected or imagined. Those who thrived during the trying moments came out victorious as they looked at their previous challenges as stepping stones instead of stumbling blocks.
Some of us may be in a similar situation today. Some may be struggling to overcome certain challenges that may appear to be too negative at the moment. Let us keep in mind that these circumstances are temporary and if we gather the courage to overcome, we can look forward to that day when we could look back and stand, having a better perspective that these things will be for our own good.
Enjoy the rest of the week everybody! And remember, there’s always a rainbow after the rain! 🙂